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The Seedling BLOG

Dyeing Eggs Naturally

  • Posted by Victoria Hackett
  • Categories The Seedling BLOG
  • Date March 27, 2016
  • Comments 0 comment

Dyeing Eggs Naturally

For Easter this year, I decided to try something a little different with our egg decorating tradition. This year my kids and I tried to use natural ingredients from our kitchen to create natural dyes for our eggs. It was an interesting experiment.

We began with blowing out our eggs.

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We did a little research on colors and natural dyes.  Better Homes and Gardens provided us with the following natural dye recipes. We tried a few. I liked the Paprika recipe and color the best.

Bluish-Gray
Mix 1 cup frozen blueberries with 1 cup water, bring to room temperature, and remove blueberries.

Blue
Cut 1/4 head of red cabbage into chunks and add to 4 cups boiling water. Stir in 2 Tbsp. vinegar. Let cool to room temperature and remove cabbage with a slotted spoon.

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Jade Green
Peel the skin from 6 red onions and simmer in 2 cups water for 15 minutes; strain. Add 3 tsp. white vinegar.

Faint Green-Yellow
Peel the skin from 6 yellow apples. Simmer in 1-1/2 cups water for 20 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar. Simmer 4 oz. chopped fennel tops in 1-1/2 cups of water for 20 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar.

Orange
Take the skin of 6 yellow onions and simmer in 2 cups water for 15 minutes; strain. Add 3 tsp. white vinegar.

Faint Red-Orange
Stir 2 Tbsp. paprika into 1 cup boiling water; add 2 tsp. white vinegar.

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Yellow

  • Rich yellow: Simmer 4 oz. chopped carrot tops in 1-1/2 cups water for 15 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar.
  • Mustard-yellow: Stir 2 Tbsp. turmeric into 1 cup boiling water; add 2 tsp. white vinegar.
  • Various shades: Steep 4 bags of chamomile or green tea in 1 cup boiling water for 5 minutes.
  • Pale yellow: Chop 4 oz. goldenrod and simmer in 2 cups water for 20 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar.
  • Faint yellow: Simmer the peels of 6 oranges in 1-1/2 cups water for 20 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. vinegar.

Brown-Gold
Simmer 2 Tbsp. dill seed in 1 cup water for 15 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar.

Brown
Add 1 tablespoon vinegar to 1 cup strong coffee.

Pink
Faint pink: Chop 4 oz. amaranth flowers and simmer in 2 cups water; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar. Simmer the skins from 6 avocados in 1-1/2 cup water for 20 minutes; strain. Add 2 tsp. white vinegar. Mix 1 cup pickled beet juice and 1 tablespoon vinegar.
Dark pink: Cut 1 medium beet into chunks and add to 4 cups boiling water. Stir in 2 Tbsp. vinegar and let cool to room temperature; remove beets.

Lavender
Mix 1 cup grape juice and 1 tablespoon vinegar.

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Our egg experiments were fascinating and our results were imperfectly beautiful!

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….and then the creativity began…HAPPY EASTER & HAPPY SPRING!

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Have you ever used natural dyes on eggs? Share your experiments in the comments below.

 

author avatar
Victoria Hackett

ABOUT VICTORIA:
My mission is for every child in every school to have access to an Outdoor Classroom. Therefore, I inspire educators to teach outdoors and lead an on-line virtual community of Natural Teachers all over the world to create their own Outdoor Classroom story.

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Garden Lesson Ideas: SEEDS
March 27, 2016

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I have all these Garden Ideas...Now What?
March 30, 2016

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